These manufacturers know that the people who pay these exhorbitant amounts are almost never audiophiles. They also know these buyers are the most easily sold a bill of goods in terms of value. I saw this ALL the time when I worked in audio...guys who bought the most expensive gear and barely knew how to turn it on.
The new dynamic in speaker pricing
Yesterday I received the latest issue of the Absolute Sound mag. This issue has the round up of the varying speaker manufacturer’s wares along with the retail pricing. One thing that struck me is the number of speaker manufacturer’s who have a speaker in their line up that cost close to a $1M!! There are good number of speakers now available with prices in the $700K+ range. A few manufacturer’s are also a little ’glib’ with their top model pricing, such as Oswalds Mill--who state- price upon inquiry only!
This new speaker pricing dynamic is interesting, as it clearly indicates that there are buyers out there who are happy to pay these prices and presumably enough buyers to make these products viable. A trend that is certainly interesting and yet questionable as to how it will impact the hobby as a whole.
Opinions on this trend?